Spirit, power at Paralympics closing ceremony

Updated September 18, 2008 09:03:54

'The greatest Paralympics ever' - Beijing's Olympics month finishes with a bang on Wednesday evening. [Reuters]

The Olympic stadium in Beijing was filled with tens of thousands of spectators again last night, as the Paralympics came to an end.

International Paralympic Committee chief Philip Craven declared the Beijing Paralympics closed, bringing down the curtain on a glittering 12-day sports extravaganza.

"These are the greatest Paralympic Games ever," Mr Craven said.
"It's all about spirit.

"The Paralympic spirit that's ever bright in our movement found here in China a kindred spirit.

"It reached out to you, you embraced it and it is now cherished in your hearts."

China correspondent Stephen McDonell was there and says that rebirth was the central message of the closing ceremony.

Dolls and cartoon characters moved to the rhythm of a music box.

Children reached for stars as if reaching for the future.

Girls wearing crowns made of trees poured into the stadium to represent the life given to China by the Yangtze and Yellow Rivers.

The director of the ceremony was renowned Chinese film director, Zhang Yimou, known for his use of colour in films such as 'Hero' and 'House of Flying Daggers'.

Mr Zhang said he wanted to thank the Paralympians who had shown great spiritual power during 10 days of competition.

He said they have shown the world the true meaning of life and that he hoped they would take home the Chinese people's enthusiasm.

A packed Bird's Nest stadium celebrated the end of the Games, widely hailed as a huge success.

Fireworks lit up the night sky as the closing ceremony got under way for the 13th Paralympics.

The theme of the ceremony was the future and the ideal is that the world's Paralympians return to their countries and pass on the feeling of hope.

Some 90,000 spectators have been asked to write on closing ceremony postcards to be delivered wherever they choose.

The performances were designed to represent rebirth, a new harvest and the coming of the northern autumn.

Countless red maple leaves symbolising respect for the athletes drifted from the stadium roof in the show.

Australia's flag bearer at the ceremony was swimmer Matt Cowdrey, who has won five gold medals at the Games in world record-making times.

China topped the medal tally at the Paralympics, finishing with 211 medals including 89 gold.

China's performance mirrored its efforts at last month's Olympics, where the host nation finished top of the medals table and won similar praise from organisers for staging a well-run and spectacular event.

Britain finished second with 42 golds out of a total haul of 102.

Australia took fifth place on the table with 23 gold medals and 79 overall.

The Games have been widely praised for their organisation and the huge crowds that turned out to watch the competition, particularly the athletics and swimming events.

China has also sought to use the Paralympics to improve the plight of its 83 million disabled, and President Hu Jintao Wednesday pledged more efforts to promote their well-being.

"The Chinese Government and people will build on the success of the Beijing Paralympic Games to carry forward the humanitarian spirit, and advance in an all-round way the well-being of people with a disability in China," he said, according to the state-run Xinhua news agency.

Huge efforts were made to show that China treated the Paralympics with as much importance as the Olympics, including keeping in place anti-pollution measures such as a partial ban on cars.

China promised Two Games with Equal Splendour, and International Paralympic Committee chief Craven said it had achieved its goal.

British organisers of the 2012 Olympics and Paralympics have also praised the "spectacular" delivery of both events but promised an outstanding event of their own.